Burning Love ~ Billy Hargrove ( +18)

Chapter 23

Billy's POV

Lunch carried on as usual. Despite what my friends had told me, part of me remained uneasy, unable to stop keeping an eye on Maddie from a distance. At first, she seemed a little tense with that guy, Munson. Not that it surprised me—she wasn't exactly an easygoing woman.

But little by little, I saw them chatting more animatedly, and eventually, I even saw them leave the cafeteria together toward the end of lunch. Almost instinctively, I looked for Steve's reaction. He was watching them walk away, looking just as bothered as I was.

Damn it, I thought. That woman wasn't going to give me a moment of peace.

"You brought this on yourself. She's giving you a taste of your own medicine after you kissed Sandra right in front of her."

That, I hadn't expected.

"I thought your sister had higher standards," Tommy's voice snapped me back to the conversation happening at our table.

"Higher like what?" Jack asked mockingly.

"High like someone like me. I don't know what the hell she sees in losers like Harrington and Munson," Tommy replied arrogantly.

I stayed silent, listening to his nonsense. What an idiot, and such a deluded fool. He had no idea that guys like him were exactly the opposite of what Maddie looked for.

"You do know I'm sitting right here, right?" Carol muttered, clearly annoyed.

"You do know you dumped me yesterday, right?" the redhead retorted, arching an indifferent eyebrow. It was obvious the breakup hadn't affected him at all. Then again, since we got here, I'd seen them break up and get back together at least once a week, so his attitude didn't surprise me.

"That's exactly why, you idiot. Because you're always chasing after other girls!" Carol stood up and threw a glass of water in his face. "I hope you hook up with that slut Mayfield and end up with some nasty STD, you moron!"

"Watch your mouth, sweetheart," I growled, getting up and grabbing Carol by the wrist, glaring at her threateningly.

"What? It's not like I lied. She sleeps with anything that moves," Carol said with a smug, cynical smile. "I don't know why you're defending her. You're the first one who can't stand her."

"Not being able to stand her is one thing," I said, fixing her with an intense, furious glare. I noticed her upper lip quiver slightly with fear. "But letting a bitch like you insult her is a completely different story."

"I'm not a bitch!" she tried to defend herself, but her voice barely came out as a whisper.

"Oh, no? Then what do you call breaking up with Tommy every other day just to hook up with someone else?" I raised an eyebrow, letting out a harsh, sarcastic laugh.

"Tommy does the same thing. Besides, Maddie is way worse than me," she stammered, trying to hold my gaze, though her voice wavered.

Stupid brat.

"Maddie's single and can do whatever the hell she wants. She doesn't owe anyone an explanation," I snapped.

"Then why does it bother you so much that she sleeps with other guys?" Carol shot back, her tone biting.

"Because I'm sure you'd catch an STD long before she ever would," I said, a mocking grin on my face. "Everyone knows the real slut in this school is you. You don't even bother to protect yourself, unlike Maddie. Not to mention you've already had to get an abortion."

The words hung heavy in the air. Carol's face went pale as the rest of the group sat in stunned silence.

"Ho... How do you know about that?" Tommy blurted out, looking paler than usual. Carol, however, seemed even more ghostly.